Building an online store can seem like a daunting task, but breaking it down into steps makes the process more manageable. With some planning and effort, you can create a successful ecommerce site to sell your products or services. This comprehensive guide covers the key steps for building your online shop from start to finish.
Table of Contents
Choose an Ecommerce Platform
The first step is selecting an ecommerce platform that meets your business needs. Some top options to consider include:
- Shopify – User-friendly, fully hosted platform ideal for small to midsize businesses. Offers beautiful themes, marketing tools, and secure payments.
- WooCommerce – WordPress plugin that lets you build a store on WordPress. Extremely customizable but requires more technical skills.
- BigCommerce – Scalable SaaS solution good for growing businesses. Includes built-in features like coupons and promotions.
- Squarespace – All-in-one platform for creating sites. Simple editor and nice designs specifically for online stores.
When comparing platforms, look at factors like:
- Features and functionality
- Ease of use
- Costs and transaction fees
- Design customization
- Scalability for growth
Choose the one that best fits your skills, budget, and business needs both now and in the future.
Register a Domain and Hosting
Once you’ve selected an ecommerce platform, the next step is to register a domain name and set up hosting.
Your domain is your online store’s address – examplestore.com. Choose a domain name that is short, easy to remember, and relates to your store or products.
If using Shopify or another fully hosted platform, they will include hosting. Alternatively, you can host your WooCommerce or custom store on shared, VPS, or dedicated hosting plans.
When registering, opt for at least a year registration term. And if budget allows, go ahead and register the .com, .net, and .org versions of your domain to protect your brand name.
Install and Configure Your Ecommerce Platform
With your hosting and domain in place, it’s time to setup your ecommerce software and configure the key settings.
For Shopify, BigCommerce, and other SaaS platforms, you can simply signup for an account and follow their setup guides. The bulk of customization comes in the next design step.
If you’re building a custom store with WooCommerce or another open source platform, installation takes a few more technical steps:
- Install WordPress on your hosting
- Install WooCommerce plugin
- Setup database, configure settings
- Install theme, plugins, and extensions
The platform guides provide specifics for getting everything installed and connected properly. Just take it slow.
Choose a Theme and Design Your Store
Now for the fun part – picking a theme and customizing your shop’s design!
Most ecommerce platforms come with numerous professional theme options. Browse both free and premium themes to find one that:
- Represents your brand style
- Displays products attractively
- Looks great on mobile
With your theme installed, use the customization settings and page editor to:
- Upload logo
- Set colors
- Organize site navigation
- Optimize images
- Create home, product, and policy pages
- Set up footer
Take your time designing an immersive shopping experience. Images, product descriptions, clear calls-to-action, and easy checkout all influence sales.
Add and Manage Products
At this point your storefront is ready for products! You have a few options for adding your inventory:
- Manual product entry – add products one by one
- Import from CSV – bulk upload inventory lists
- Integrate other sales channels – connect existing product catalogs
As you input products, be sure to include detailed titles, descriptions, images, pricing, attributes, inventory counts, and shipping rules. This rich product content is vital for SEO and conversion optimization later on.
Ongoing, update stock levels when items sell out. And take new product photos periodically to keep listings fresh and appealing.
Configure Payments, Taxes, and Shipping
Now it’s time to setup how customers will pay for their purchases. You’ll need to:
- Connect a payment gateway – Stripe and PayPal are popular choices. They integrate directly with major ecommerce platforms.
- Set taxes – identify which taxes apply, rates, locations, exemptions, etc. Automated tax calculation integrates with payment processing.
- Define shipping methods and rates – decide whether to offer free shipping, flat rates, carrier calculated rates, local pickup, etc.
Providing clear policies and costs upfront leads to less abandoned carts during checkout. Integrated payment processing also enables one-page checkout for a streamlined buying experience.
Market Your Online Store
Creating an amazing online shop is just the beginning. Now you need to get found by customers ready to buy!
- Optimize for search engines – ensure site pages load quickly and use SEO best practices. Create fresh, relevant content that incorporates strategic keywords.
- Run paid ads – invest in pay-per-click and social campaigns focused on your target audience. Drive traffic directly to popular products and promotions.
- Promote on social media – showcase products and build relationships with potential customers. Leverage influencer and affiliate partnerships.
- Send email campaigns – collect emails to build subscriber lists through lead magnets and popups. Send regular sales emails, newsletters, win-backs, and more.
- Analyze performance – use ecommerce analytics and Google Analytics to identify opportunities – top-converting keywords and ads, best-selling products, referral traffic sources, etc. Continuously improve based on insights.
Driving consistent traffic and sales takes ongoing testing and optimization across multiple channels. But the hard work pays off with site growth and revenue!
Expand and Refine Operations
As your online business grows, there are several operational considerations for providing exceptional customer experiences and streamlining internal processes:
- Hire help – contractors or agencies to assist with web development, design, digital marketing, customer service, order fulfillment and shipping, accounting, etc.
- Integrate tools – connect complementary systems for accounting, email marketing, CRM, inventory management, order processing, etc. Automations save tons of time!
- Offer promotions – provide incentives like sales, bundles, free gifts and special financing. Create FOMO and excitement around the shopping experience.
- Simplify mobile – ensure site pages load quickly on mobile devices. Optimize checkouts for tiny screens. Develop a user-friendly mobile app.
- Update policies – evolve return, exchange, privacy and use policies as needed. Display policies clearly throughout site.
While launching an online store has a defined set of steps, refining and improving processes is an ongoing endeavor as your business expands.
Go Live and Start Selling!
If you’ve followed each step, planned thoroughly, and set everything up properly – congratulations, you’re open for business!
It’s an amazing feeling to see that first sale come through knowing customers appreciate your products enough to spend their hard-earned money. With a data-driven approach to marketing and operations, you can build on this to sell profitably over the long-term.
The most important thing is to get started. You can work out kinks or pivot ideas once you have real customer feedback. As your online shop grows, stay focused on providing genuine value through quality products, rich content, and delightful shopping experiences. The rest will follow from there!
